Sunday, February 23, 2014

Two of my closest friends, Jules & Tan has fallen head over heels with running. They're the kind of friends that are easy to be around, friends with the same type of humor, love for adventure and level of appreciation for good food (and lots of it!), which also make them awesome travel buddies.

Unfortunately, that meant getting dragged into their out of town running adventures. As both were training for a skyrunning event dubbed as the Akyathlon, they needed some quality high altitude training. An accessible training ground which offers exactly that is Baguio, the Philippines' summer capital.

We took an evening bus from Victory Liner Pasay (trip schedules here) and by 9:00 AM, we had left Tuvera Lodge (FB Page here)for our first day of training. Camp John Hay (CJH) which can be reached by a 15-minute walk on quick strides, was nearest from the lodge.

Quick gear check before beginning our run

CJH's Yellow Trail was our playground for the day. It is used by horse riding operators and has also gotten popular among hikers, bikers and fellow runners out for a good sweat. Apart from this route, you can also try the Blue and White Trail, also within CJH's vicinity, which I am yet to visit in the future. Entrance is free and it's easy to find your way in and out. With pine trees and scenic mountain views, it's hard not to feel happy when you're surrounded with this much beauty! :) The length of the route, out and back was 9.6 KM.

The terrain offers rocky, dusty sections which are easy on the knees but you have to watch out for pine needles on the ground which can be very slippery, as well as the tricky bits - tree roots on the trail which can cause nasty falls. I've been to this route twice and each time, I managed to trip on the same section (where the roots and loose rocks are) and brought home some cuts on my hands as souvenirs.

Towards the end of the route, we found ourselves surrounded by pine trees

After our run, we headed towards Techno Hub, a portion of Camp John Hay where you can find offices, shops, cafes and restaurants. We dined at an old favorite, Pizza Volante. Here they have affordable, delicious meals, a fusion of Italian and Filipino dishes for 100 Pesos. Its first branch is along Session Road and is open 24 hours, good place to burn time if you arrived in Baguio early and waiting for the first bus trip to Sagada which is at 6:00 AM.

Jules and Tanny, til our next adventure! :) Sana matuloy na yung Ugo natin, once and for all :P. (We miss you Mors!)

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